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05-04-2008, 05:52 PM
Daily Reflections
THE FOREST AND THE TREES
. . . . what comes to us alone may be garbled by our own
rationalization and wishful thinking. The benefit of talking
to another person is that we can get his direct comment and
counsel on our situation. . . . .
TWELVE STEPS AND TWELVE TRADITIONS, p. 60
I cannot count the times when I have been angry and frustrated
and said to myself, "I can't see the forest for the trees!" I
finally realized that what I needed when I was in such pain was
someone who could guide me in separating the forest and the
trees; who could suggest a better path to follow; who could
assist me in putting out fires; and help me avoid the rocks and
pitfalls.
I ask God, when I'm in the forest, to give me the courage to
call upon a member of A.A.
************************************************** *********
Twenty-Four Hours A Day
A.A. Thought For The Day
I had to show off and boast so that people would think I
amounted to something, when, of course, both they and I knew
that I really didn't amount to anything. I didn't fool anybody.
Although I've been sober for quite a while, the old habit of
building myself up is still with me. I still have a tendency to
think too well of myself and to pretend to be more than I really
am. Am I always in danger of becoming conceited just because
I'm sober?
Meditation For The Day
I cannot ascertain the spiritual with my intellect. I can only
do it by my own faith and spiritual faculties. I must think of
God more with my heart than with my head. I can breathe in God's
very spirit in the life around me. I can keep my eyes turned
toward the good things in the world. I am shut up in a box of
space and time, but I can open a window in that box by faith.
I can empty my mind of all the limitations of material things.
I can sense the Eternal.
Prayer For The Day
I pray that whatever is good I may have. I pray that I may
leave to God the choice of what good will come to me.
************************************************** *********
As Bill Sees It
Relapses--and the Group, p. 154
An early fear was that of slips or relapses. At first nearly every
alcoholic we approached began to slip, if indeed he sobered up at all.
Others would stay dry six months or maybe a year and then take a
skid. This was always a genuine catastrophe. We would all look at
each other and say, "Who next?"
Today, though slips are a very serious difficulty, as a group we take
them in stride. Fear has evaporated. Alcohol always threatens the
individual, but we know that it cannot destroy the common welfare.
<< << << >> >> >>
"It does not seem to pay to argue with 'slippers' about the proper
method of getting dry. After all, why should people who are drinking
tell people who are dry how it should be done?
"Just kid the boys along--ask them if they are having fun. If they are
too noisy or troublesome, amiably keep out of their way."
1. A.A. Comes Of Age, p. 97
2. Letter, 1942
************************************************** *********
Walk in Dry Places
Tough Honesty? Honesty
The term tough love came into use to describe an attitude that aims to correct bad behavior by refusing to indulge or enable it. In the same way, we must recognize that there's such a thing as tough honesty when situations require us to deal with unpleasant facts.
One employer liked to compliment his subordinates even for work that he actually considered substandard. Later on, however, he would express his real opinions to an intermediate supervisor, who would then be forced to convey the bad news to the workers involved. The employer thought he was being kind, when he was actually being deceptive and treacherous simply because he wanted to be liked.
We have a moral obligation to practice though honesty whenever it is required, if something unacceptable needs to be dealt with, we must do so in a timely manner..... Taking care to be as reasonable and fair as possible in stating our case.
Being honest in this way with others is also a reminder that we should always be honest with ourselves.
Today I'll face the need for real honest whenever it's required. I'll be upfront with myself and others about anything that must be faced and dealt with. I will not use supposed kindness as an excuse for bearing false witness.
************************************************** *********
Keep It Simple
Forgiveness is all-powerful. Forgiveness heals all ills.---Catherine Ponder
We need to forgive so we can heal. Forgiveness means not wanting to get even. Forgiveness means letting go of self-will. Anger and hate are forms of self-will take up room in our heart. Yet, a still, small voice inside of us wants to forgive. Just as others have forgiven us, we need to forgive them. When we forgive, we give our will to our Higher Power. When we forgive, we make room in our heart for our Higher Power. By giving up our anger and our hate, we let that still, small voice come through a little louder. This is how we heal. This is why forgiving is so powerful for us.
Prayer for the Day: Higher Power, help me let go of self-will. Help me forgive people.
Action for the Day: I will list any anger or hate I have. I will think about how this gets in my way, and I'll pray to have this removed.
************************************************** *********
Alcoholics Anonymous - Fourth Edition
A LATE START - "It's been ten years since I retired, seven years since I joined A.A. Now I can truly say that I am a grateful alcoholic."
Once again my daughter came to my rescue, and I checked into the detox program at the hospital. This time I was there for ten days. During that time, A.A. meetings were made available at the hospital. I was genuinely touched by the fact they they were led by a young man in a leg cast and on crutches, especially when I realized that he came as a volunteer. And twice before I left, I was given a leave of absence to attend local A.A. meetings.
p. 539
************************************************** *********
Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions
Step Ten - "Continued to take personal inventory and when we were wrong promptly admitted it."
When a drunk has a terrific hangover because he drank heavily yesterday, he cannot live well today. But there is another kind of hangover which we all experience whether we are drinking or not. That is the emotional hangover, the direct result of yesterday's and sometimes today's excesses of negative emotion--anger, fear, jealousy, and the like. If we would live serenely today and tomorrow, we certainly need to eliminate these hangovers. This doesn't mean we need to wander morbidly around in the past. It requires an admission and correction of errors now. Our inventory enables us to settle with the past. When this is done, we are really able to leave it behind us. When our inventory is carefully taken, and we have made peace with ourselves, the conviction follows that tomorrow's challenges can be met as they come.
pp. 88-89
************************************************** *********
"'I always remember the friendliness and kindness and closeness we all
felt. Later, I could go anyplace in the whole United States and find a
friend in A.A.'"
--Henrietta D.
"Gratitude is the heart's memory."
--French Proverb
For all my good intentions, there are days when things go wrong or I fall
into old habits. When things are not going well, when I'm grumpy or
mad, I'll realize that I've not been paying attention to my soul and I've
not been following my best routine.
--Robert Fulghum
The best gifts to give:
To your friend - loyalty;
To your enemy - forgiveness;
To your boss - service;
To a child - a good example;
To your parents - gratitude and devotion;
To your mate - love and faithfulness;
To all men and women - love;
To God - your life.
--Author Unknown
"Everyone is a house with four rooms, a physical, a mental, an emotional and a spiritual. Most of us tend to live in one room most of the time, but
unless we go into every room every day, even if only to keep it aired, we
are not a complete person."
************************************************** *********
Father Leo's Daily Meditation
HOPE
"Hope is the pillar that holds up
the world. Hope is the dream of
the working man."
--Pliny the Elder
I look at the world and I discover an order, a pattern to life, a balance
within the system. I do not believe in a God of chaos. I find a spiritual
stability in creation. Night follows day; people, regardless of culture or
creed, are remarkably similar in feelings and needs; death makes way
for life. The God who created this world has given the seeds of hope
within the living of life. I am the key to the understanding of the
universe.
In this observation I find hope. If I continue to go with the flow of life, I
will find peace and stability. It is only when I fight the system that I
experience pain.
May the God of order and stability continue to bring balance into my life
by the spiritual changes I continue to make.
************************************************** *********
"Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I
press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called
me heavenward in Christ Jesus."
Philippians 3:13-14
"Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!"
Philippians 4:4
"Come near to God and he will come near to you."
James 4:8a
"To You, O LORD, I lift up my soul. O my God, I trust in You; Let me
not be ashamed; Let not my enemies triumph over me."
Psalm 25:1-2
"I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in
me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved
me and gave himself for me."
Galatians 2:20
************************************************** *********
Daily Inspiration
To become more efficient and happier, daily spend some quiet time with God and with yourself. Lord, what joy it is to know that You will listen.
What we endure in this life is nothing compared to the glory that God has in store for us in heaven. Lord, take every moment of my life as a prayer to praise and glorify Your holy name.
THE FOREST AND THE TREES
. . . . what comes to us alone may be garbled by our own
rationalization and wishful thinking. The benefit of talking
to another person is that we can get his direct comment and
counsel on our situation. . . . .
TWELVE STEPS AND TWELVE TRADITIONS, p. 60
I cannot count the times when I have been angry and frustrated
and said to myself, "I can't see the forest for the trees!" I
finally realized that what I needed when I was in such pain was
someone who could guide me in separating the forest and the
trees; who could suggest a better path to follow; who could
assist me in putting out fires; and help me avoid the rocks and
pitfalls.
I ask God, when I'm in the forest, to give me the courage to
call upon a member of A.A.
************************************************** *********
Twenty-Four Hours A Day
A.A. Thought For The Day
I had to show off and boast so that people would think I
amounted to something, when, of course, both they and I knew
that I really didn't amount to anything. I didn't fool anybody.
Although I've been sober for quite a while, the old habit of
building myself up is still with me. I still have a tendency to
think too well of myself and to pretend to be more than I really
am. Am I always in danger of becoming conceited just because
I'm sober?
Meditation For The Day
I cannot ascertain the spiritual with my intellect. I can only
do it by my own faith and spiritual faculties. I must think of
God more with my heart than with my head. I can breathe in God's
very spirit in the life around me. I can keep my eyes turned
toward the good things in the world. I am shut up in a box of
space and time, but I can open a window in that box by faith.
I can empty my mind of all the limitations of material things.
I can sense the Eternal.
Prayer For The Day
I pray that whatever is good I may have. I pray that I may
leave to God the choice of what good will come to me.
************************************************** *********
As Bill Sees It
Relapses--and the Group, p. 154
An early fear was that of slips or relapses. At first nearly every
alcoholic we approached began to slip, if indeed he sobered up at all.
Others would stay dry six months or maybe a year and then take a
skid. This was always a genuine catastrophe. We would all look at
each other and say, "Who next?"
Today, though slips are a very serious difficulty, as a group we take
them in stride. Fear has evaporated. Alcohol always threatens the
individual, but we know that it cannot destroy the common welfare.
<< << << >> >> >>
"It does not seem to pay to argue with 'slippers' about the proper
method of getting dry. After all, why should people who are drinking
tell people who are dry how it should be done?
"Just kid the boys along--ask them if they are having fun. If they are
too noisy or troublesome, amiably keep out of their way."
1. A.A. Comes Of Age, p. 97
2. Letter, 1942
************************************************** *********
Walk in Dry Places
Tough Honesty? Honesty
The term tough love came into use to describe an attitude that aims to correct bad behavior by refusing to indulge or enable it. In the same way, we must recognize that there's such a thing as tough honesty when situations require us to deal with unpleasant facts.
One employer liked to compliment his subordinates even for work that he actually considered substandard. Later on, however, he would express his real opinions to an intermediate supervisor, who would then be forced to convey the bad news to the workers involved. The employer thought he was being kind, when he was actually being deceptive and treacherous simply because he wanted to be liked.
We have a moral obligation to practice though honesty whenever it is required, if something unacceptable needs to be dealt with, we must do so in a timely manner..... Taking care to be as reasonable and fair as possible in stating our case.
Being honest in this way with others is also a reminder that we should always be honest with ourselves.
Today I'll face the need for real honest whenever it's required. I'll be upfront with myself and others about anything that must be faced and dealt with. I will not use supposed kindness as an excuse for bearing false witness.
************************************************** *********
Keep It Simple
Forgiveness is all-powerful. Forgiveness heals all ills.---Catherine Ponder
We need to forgive so we can heal. Forgiveness means not wanting to get even. Forgiveness means letting go of self-will. Anger and hate are forms of self-will take up room in our heart. Yet, a still, small voice inside of us wants to forgive. Just as others have forgiven us, we need to forgive them. When we forgive, we give our will to our Higher Power. When we forgive, we make room in our heart for our Higher Power. By giving up our anger and our hate, we let that still, small voice come through a little louder. This is how we heal. This is why forgiving is so powerful for us.
Prayer for the Day: Higher Power, help me let go of self-will. Help me forgive people.
Action for the Day: I will list any anger or hate I have. I will think about how this gets in my way, and I'll pray to have this removed.
************************************************** *********
Alcoholics Anonymous - Fourth Edition
A LATE START - "It's been ten years since I retired, seven years since I joined A.A. Now I can truly say that I am a grateful alcoholic."
Once again my daughter came to my rescue, and I checked into the detox program at the hospital. This time I was there for ten days. During that time, A.A. meetings were made available at the hospital. I was genuinely touched by the fact they they were led by a young man in a leg cast and on crutches, especially when I realized that he came as a volunteer. And twice before I left, I was given a leave of absence to attend local A.A. meetings.
p. 539
************************************************** *********
Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions
Step Ten - "Continued to take personal inventory and when we were wrong promptly admitted it."
When a drunk has a terrific hangover because he drank heavily yesterday, he cannot live well today. But there is another kind of hangover which we all experience whether we are drinking or not. That is the emotional hangover, the direct result of yesterday's and sometimes today's excesses of negative emotion--anger, fear, jealousy, and the like. If we would live serenely today and tomorrow, we certainly need to eliminate these hangovers. This doesn't mean we need to wander morbidly around in the past. It requires an admission and correction of errors now. Our inventory enables us to settle with the past. When this is done, we are really able to leave it behind us. When our inventory is carefully taken, and we have made peace with ourselves, the conviction follows that tomorrow's challenges can be met as they come.
pp. 88-89
************************************************** *********
"'I always remember the friendliness and kindness and closeness we all
felt. Later, I could go anyplace in the whole United States and find a
friend in A.A.'"
--Henrietta D.
"Gratitude is the heart's memory."
--French Proverb
For all my good intentions, there are days when things go wrong or I fall
into old habits. When things are not going well, when I'm grumpy or
mad, I'll realize that I've not been paying attention to my soul and I've
not been following my best routine.
--Robert Fulghum
The best gifts to give:
To your friend - loyalty;
To your enemy - forgiveness;
To your boss - service;
To a child - a good example;
To your parents - gratitude and devotion;
To your mate - love and faithfulness;
To all men and women - love;
To God - your life.
--Author Unknown
"Everyone is a house with four rooms, a physical, a mental, an emotional and a spiritual. Most of us tend to live in one room most of the time, but
unless we go into every room every day, even if only to keep it aired, we
are not a complete person."
************************************************** *********
Father Leo's Daily Meditation
HOPE
"Hope is the pillar that holds up
the world. Hope is the dream of
the working man."
--Pliny the Elder
I look at the world and I discover an order, a pattern to life, a balance
within the system. I do not believe in a God of chaos. I find a spiritual
stability in creation. Night follows day; people, regardless of culture or
creed, are remarkably similar in feelings and needs; death makes way
for life. The God who created this world has given the seeds of hope
within the living of life. I am the key to the understanding of the
universe.
In this observation I find hope. If I continue to go with the flow of life, I
will find peace and stability. It is only when I fight the system that I
experience pain.
May the God of order and stability continue to bring balance into my life
by the spiritual changes I continue to make.
************************************************** *********
"Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I
press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called
me heavenward in Christ Jesus."
Philippians 3:13-14
"Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!"
Philippians 4:4
"Come near to God and he will come near to you."
James 4:8a
"To You, O LORD, I lift up my soul. O my God, I trust in You; Let me
not be ashamed; Let not my enemies triumph over me."
Psalm 25:1-2
"I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in
me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved
me and gave himself for me."
Galatians 2:20
************************************************** *********
Daily Inspiration
To become more efficient and happier, daily spend some quiet time with God and with yourself. Lord, what joy it is to know that You will listen.
What we endure in this life is nothing compared to the glory that God has in store for us in heaven. Lord, take every moment of my life as a prayer to praise and glorify Your holy name.